This settles it. I’m officially a huge fan of albums made by one artist and one producer: Blu & Exile’s Below The Heavens, Fashawn & Exile’s Boy Meets World, Sene & Blu’s A Day Late & A Dollar Short, Killer Mike & El-P’s R.A.P. Music, and now MaLLy & The Sundance Kid’s The Last Great… The Minneapolis duo’s album dropped just two days ago, and is available for free download. I definitely recommend checking it out. Early favourites include “Shine”, “The Renaissance 2.0″, “Winner”, “Good One”, and “Unplugged” (featuring fellow Minneapolis native Brother Ali). MaLLy is scheduled to co-host the upcoming Soundset Festival. Stream and download The Last Great… below.
“’Heavy in the Game’ is a line that comes from my favourite 2Pac song. It’s about being immersed in your craft that even though you may want to leave, you can’t – you’ve worked too hard to get where you are and there’s no looking back. As a Canadian musician, especially a rapper, I’m grateful that I’ve been able to be doing this professionally for 10 years. This album represents my best work. I’m proud that a lot of people will be able to relate to this album. Heavy in the Game is about trying to do the right thing even when you are faced with the temptation to slip. – D.O.”
D.O.’s highly-anticipated album Heavy In The Game just dropped today, and is available for free via Bandcamp. Spanning 21 tracks and clocking in at around 1 hour, Heavy In The Game is a solid offering from the Toronto veteran. The inspiration for Heavy in the Game comes from D.O.’s extensive domestic and international touring, his experience with launching independent label Northstarr Entertainment, and his success as one half of hip hop duo Art of Fresh. Early favourites include “Bill Russell”, “Can’t Tell Me” (Remix), “For Heaven Sake”, “It’s On”, “Shut It Down”, and “The Legacy 2.0″. Stream and download the entire album below.
Today, Ab-Soul’s latest work, Control System arrived on iTunes. Although not much promotion was put into the project, many TDE fans have been waiting for this day for a while. Over the past couple days we’ve heard a couple tracks off the album such as ILLuminate & Black Lip Bastard (Remix) which both feature Kendrick Lamar. Additional features on the album include fellow Black Hippy members Jay Rock & Schoolboy Q, along with other familiar names in the game such as Jhene Aiko, Danny Brown & BJ The Chicago Kid to name a few that add their verses to several tracks.
The album spans 17 songs, and for only $8.99 on iTunes in Canada, for that price I can definitely recommend it. If you’re looking for something to check out before you buy it, ILLuminate & Black Lip Bastard (Remix) are available for stream on our site.
On a side note, check out our interview with Ab-Soul below & the interview article.
“I put everything into this record. I said I was going to do everything I wanna do and say everything I wanna say.” – Killer Mike
Spin recently caught up with Killer Mike to talk about his latest offering, the politically-charged R.A.P. Music, set to drop May 15th. Mike Bigga took the time to break down each song on the album. Stream R.A.P. Music and read the track breakdowns here. This album BANGS! Props to Luke McCormick of Spin for the interview.
When you think of Pittsburgh and Hip-Hop, you think Mac Miller and Wiz Khalifa. Up and coming rapper and producer, Devin Miles, is looking to add his name into that mix. ID Labs studio in Pittsburgh is where all the magic happens for Mac, Wiz and Devin. The newest project to come out of the lab is Devin’s This Is How I Live, a full-length album that is available for free of charge. The 11 track album includes production from the likes of Cardo, Chase N. Cashe and ID Labs. I’ve been bumping this album non-stop since I got my hands on it, so I suggest you do the same and experience the Pittsburgh natives talents for yourself. Get a feel for the album with a few of my early favourites below and I’m sure you’ll be hitting the download link in no time.
Download: Devin Miles – “This Is How I Live” (Via The DJBooth)
Detroit hip-hop group Clear Soul Forces recently dropped Detroit Revolution(s), a thoroughly solid 15-track offering. Consisting of members L.A.Z, Ilajide, E-Fav, and Noveliss, Clear Soul Forces brings a fresh, new sound to the Detroit hip-hop scene, combining slick rhymes with infectious beats. Early favourites are “Half As Long//Twice As Bright”, “15 Minutes”, “Get No Better”, and “Stick Em”. Check out the visuals for “Get No Better” and stream/download Detroit Revolution(s) below.
Western Canadian Music Award nominee & producer Cityreal, teamed up with Blues singer Wes Mackey for the march released album Good Morning Blues. The album is comprised of 11 tracks of great soulful hip-hop mixed with blues elements and vocals. Production of 10 songs comes via Cityreal himself, which allowed for an in-depth fusion of the two influences (blues and hip hop) to create this dope album. Features from the hip-hop world are on board Good Morning Blues including D-Sisive & Madchild (of Swollen Members), adding great contributions to their respective tracks.
I’ve been listening to it on repeat without even realizing it’s played over and over. I believe that attributes to the great vibe this album has, and the soulful blues elements in the music that make it a beautiful, full listen. Check out the album via the bandcamp player & download below.
Download: Cityreal & Wes Mackey – Good Morning Blues
Texas beatmaker Shag recently dropped Remixes and B-Sides, a 20-track compilation of original remixes as well as a few B-sides that didn’t make the cut for his upcoming EP. I first found out about Shag when I heard his outstanding Flyrule album last year, an 11-track instrumental hip-hop reworking of The Legend of Zelda music. If you’re a fan of the Zelda series, I highly recommend checking it out. Standout tracks on Remixes and B-Sides are Nas and AZ’s “Life’s A Bitch” remix, and Co$$’s “Scriptures” remix. Stream and download Remixes and B-Sides below.
I recently caught up with Vancouver rapper Attikus while he was on tour in London with Teenburger, and was put onto his latest album, Boo Radley. I was very impressed with his live show, and equally impressed after listening to Boo Radley. The Wandering Worx signee and original member of the Vancouver boom bap band Groundbreakers brings a distinct blue-collar presence to his music, and delves deep into the human mind over hard-hitting boom bap beats and DJ cuts. Early favourites are “Poltergeists”, “Stay Up” ft. Fatty Down, “Manifesto”, and “Pa’ Dentro” ft. El Tipo Este. Stream Boo Radley below, and if you’d like to, purchase it by donation off his Bandcamp page.
I named this album about a character from the same book I took my name; “To Kill A Mockingbird”. This book always intrigued and engaged me and the moral of the story always had a profound influence on all my writing. In the classic novel, Boo Radley is misunderstood as a threat or shadowy figure to be wary or careful of, something he was not [...] At times, like myself, Hip Hop is judged and misunderstood as something it is not, only to reveal itself as an ally with with positive characteristics [...] Hip Hop is my Boo Radley.
Hot damn! I finally had the time to sit down and listen to Fraction and Fresh Kils’ latest album, and I was thoroughly impressed. The Kitchener emcee and producer has been putting in work for a long time (since ’91), and the results show on Extra Science. With producer and MPC wizard Fresh Kils handling much of the production and engineering, Fraction and Kils combine to create some absolutely solid boom bap hip-hop. Featured on Extra Science are Kitchener-Waterloo/Toronto rap group The Get By, Kitchener native MisterE, and Specks. Early favourites are “Extra Science”, “Hold On” ft. Specks & The Get By (Justis & Mantis), and “That’s A Rap” ft. MisterE. Stream the entire album below, and purchase it if you dig it.
Originally, I had planned to speak on just one track from Purple Tinted, called Make Up. Although, after listening to the album in full I believe the entire work deserves the shine. Purple Tinted is a remixed version of David Dallas’ 2011 release of The Rose Tint Album. Remixed entirely by Forty One, Purple Tinted projects a great new feel to the entire album and unlike most remixed records, it sounds amazing and takes nothing away from the original records, in terms of intent and meaning. A few highlight tracks for me were Make Up, John’s Postcard, & Ain’t Perfect, the album is on Forty One’s Bandcamp page, which is available for download, you choose the price style. This is truly a great remixed album, so dont sleep. Streams of the entire album is down below for your enjoyment.
